the 2008 blog
02/03/2008
Internet radio on PocketPC
I have been listening to Internet radio on my WiFi enabled PSP for a while but thought it would be good to have a bedside Internet radio with clock and alarm. Instead of spending more money on even more gadgets I thought about the PocketPC M500 PDA/Phone (with WiFi) I have left over from a recent upgrade. After a Google search direct from the PDA I found GSPlayer and a customised skin and downloaded them direct to the PDA.
All I have to do now is browse to SHOUTCAST and hit 'Tune In' to download any playlist to play live Internet radio. The PDA is docked on the bedside table, with power and audio out port for headphones or a portable speaker. GSPlayer has a sleep function to turn off the PDA after a set period, great for when you have nodded off!
I've also downloaded a digital clock face to display the time (large) during the night, and use wake up alarm functions on the PDA for an alarm clock. Next step would be to have the face displaying the current weather and stock market updates (... NOT)
16/02/2008
Pulling images from Flickr
It's amazing how one thing leads to another. I'm now involved in looking into the Flickr API to pull images from an account and display on another website. There are quite a few ways of doing it and even a simple ASP page rendering the Flickr RSS feeds will do ... but In my travels I have found a few Flash based examples, and this one takes today's prize (especially the PRO version!) ....
View full screen!
29/01/2008
Check out my Flickr badge
| A Flickr badge of all my photo's with the tag of 'beach' this will auto update if I add or delete photo's with that tag ... nice! Click on any thumbnail and it will link straight to that photo's page. Click here to view a full screen presentation of my photo's tagged with 'beach' |
23/01/2008
Moo MiniCards
I recently stumbled across MOO through my flickr account. It's an online printing and gift company ... which isn't very unusual considering I have been using Fotango / Photobox since 2001, however it integrates with the likes of flickr and facebook to allow you to print your images direct without having to upload to yet another online photo printer. I think the MiniCards are ace! 350 g/m in weight with a matt laminate and you can even buy special MiniCard holders! With the ability to place your own text on the back they would make a very nice alternative to traditional business cards as each set of 100 orders can use 100 different photo's for the front! They have a thousand uses from thank you cards to invites to bookmarks and you can check out what people are doing with MiniCards.
If you have a Flickr account, I have found the FREE Windows Live Photo Gallery to be a great desktop application to view, organise, batch resize and upload photo's.
22/01/2008
Remote control fever
With the recent remote control activity I thought I'd get my remote control Mini out for a blast and show Dill. We drove it on the drive outside and into the street, as it's wet it was pretty easy to do full 360 donuts ;) and Dill's favourite game was to make a tunnel for it with his legs. It's a bit too fast for Dill to play with, so he has his own lower powered version which we can use in the house. I got into remote control Mini's one Christmas before the kids 'arrived' and like all my 'fads' ended up with the full kit!
These Tamiya Mini Cooper Racing kits come as unpainted clear shells and you have to spray paint them from the inside (avoids scratching) so you have to lay down the colours carefully! The transfers then go on the outside. Once you've spent a small fortune on the base kit, you then need a controller, servos, batteries, chargers and specialist paint - at that point you realise the base kit was the cheap bit!!
On a closing note, if any family members are actually reading this .... I posted a link in November to another material desire, that could bridge the gap between land and water at Markeaton Park :) ...
Twin Turbo Radio Controlled Hovercraft
22/01/2008
Tassimo
I just want to mention that I think the Tassimo is great! I got one for Jane at Christmas and the ease and taste of the drinks is amazing. No fuss, just pop in a disc and press the button ... Check out the different T DISCs
22/01/2008
Remote control helicopter
I was given a remote control helicopter for Christmas (watch the video) - It was on my wish list and I was really pleased when I unwrapped the present and shrieked with joy, just like a child. Nick also got one so we had great fun on Christmas day learning just how to fly these things in confined spaces! My little boy had great fun over Christmas either attempting to fly or acting as a retrieving assistant as the helicopter nose dived towards the floor. When I got back to the office in the New Year I took the chopper in and the guys also shrieked like children when they had a go! .... within 10 minutes no less than 4 Remote Control Helicopters were ordered from one of the sites we built - undertenpounds.com at only 9.99 it was an opportunity not to be missed!
The only problem now is that when I was in town with Colin, I noticed this helicopter in Maplin and the wish list has just grown!
21/01/2008
The Italian Job scalextric
The Italian Job (remake) was on TV again the other day, what a great film. Not as good as the original of course but being a 'classic' Mini and a 'new' Mini owner/fan I can appreciate the need for progress! Anyway, It made me remember my Italian Job Scalextric models in the loft - I got them down and placed them in the display cabinet with the other classic Corgi mini's (shock, Horror) Hopefully my boy will soon be getting to an age where I can safely get my Classic Mini Scalextric track out of the loft for him to play with! I'll also have to show him my Scalextric trophy :)
- Limited Edition - Only 7,500 Made
- SW Mabuchi Motor
- LED Head Lights
- Working Rear Lights
- Magnet
14/01/2008
Aerial amplifiers and distribution
If you have SKY it's always been fairly easy to distribute to multiple rooms in your house by using coaxial cable, a booster with Infra Red bypass and SKY eyes that send the Infra Red remote signals back to the box. I send SKY+ to four extra TV's using this setup with the ability to view live, pause or playback from the main box in any room. If you don't have SKY then you can use a Freeview box to do the same thing but you need to ensure the DTT decoder has RF modulation or RF modulated output - this means that it can re-broadcast the signal onto a new TV channel. Also check for Infra Red compatibility.
13/01/2008
Wii features
I've liked the look of the Wii concept since it came out but have never surcome to its lure due to small children running around my ankles. I was going to buy a Wii for Christmas, but alas, the price went through the roof and they were in short demand. Yesterday 12 days into the new year I walked past WH Smith offering them for the 'official' RRP complete with Wii Sports.
Things I've learn 't about the Wii:
- It has built in Wi-FI.
- It now comes with a rubber jacket for the remote to help avoid injury to others!.
- The Opera Internet browser is downloadable for 500 Wii points (£3.50!) .
- It plays Youtube videos from the site direct to your TV :)
- It takes SD cards and plays photo's and AVI (direct from digital compacts)
- It's small and has an ATI logo!
- Even in standby it downloads from the Internet!
- There is a website dedicated to Wii damage and injuries!
- There are some weird accessories
05/01/2008
PSP features
I have loved the game WipeOut since it appeared in Hackers. Playing it on the PSOne just before Christmas made me take a look to see if it was still in development. Well, yes it is still being developed and still features great music, but now it's for the PlayStation Portable.
Things I've learn 't about the PSP Slim:
- It now features a TV out. I have an AV cable and can view photos and videos from the Memory stick (4GB purchased).
- A Component cable can be used to play games directly on the TV.
- It has built in Wi-Fi and Internet browsing is quite a nice feature (also can be viewed on TV).
- Full DVD movies can be converted and played on screen or TV.
- WipeOut Pulse has made quite a few enhancements since the PSone!
- Multiplayer gaming over the internet or just to another PSP in the room with the built in Wi-Fi.
- It has internet radio and uses Wi-Fi to stream music (or MP3, WMA).
- It has RSS feed software and can download video from feeds.
- Full games and Demos can be downloaded direct to the device.
- It will charge via USB when in USB mode.
View the blog from 2007>
